


The One Where Sokka is Kind of an Idiot

by thefiresfromheaven



Series: Zukka Omega!Verse [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alpha Sokka, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Campfire, Honey, Implied Past Verbal Abuse, M/M, Omega Verse, Omega Zuko, Ozai was a terrible father, Zuko is a precious muffin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-25
Updated: 2016-06-25
Packaged: 2018-07-18 03:16:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7297267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefiresfromheaven/pseuds/thefiresfromheaven
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His speechlessness does not come from the fact that it is Zuko standing in front of them (looking kinda naked without his armor, if he's being honest), because the guy has followed them literally across the entire world, tracked them on a flying bison over open water from one Pole to the other, so yeah, he's really not surprised that he's here, now. What he is surprised by is that that scent- that oh so delicious honey-and-fire scent- is definitely coming from Zuko.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The One Where Sokka is Kind of an Idiot

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this at one in the morning in a haze of exhausted inspiration. Please forgive what may be numerous mistakes.
> 
> Also, several lines of dialogue (plus the characters) are from the actual show, so all credit to the absolutely fantastic writers and artists who created the original series.
> 
> Finally, my love for Zukka (and therefore this fic) was inspired by beersforqueers and their amazing Zukka stories. Check them out on here and become as dangerously obsessed with the pairing as I am.

Sokka catches the scent an instant before Toph speaks.

“I think that'll have to wait,” she says, jerking her thumb up to point over her shoulder.

He and the rest of the group stare at her in confusion, but mostly he's distracted by that strange new smell. It's… honey? Honey and sunshine, maybe? If sunshine had a smell, which is doesn't, obviously, stupid. More like… a campfire. Yeah, a campfire, that's it, made up of cedar and apple logs, and man he can just about smell the sparks coming off of that imaginary campfire and it smells fucking amazing. 

Then Appa moves out of the way so those of them not blessed with seeing-eye feet can see what Toph already knows is there and for once Sokka is completely speechless.

His speechlessness does not come from the fact that it is Zuko standing in front of them (looking kinda naked without his armor, if he's being honest), because the guy has followed them literally across the entire world, tracked them on a flying bison over open water from one Pole to the other, so yeah, he's really not surprised that he's here, now. What he is surprised by is that that scent- that oh so delicious honey-and-fire scent- is definitely coming from Zuko.

“Hello,” Zuko says, raising a hand and giving a small, awkward wave, like he's not used to such trivial gestures. He looks smaller without his armor, Sokka notes distantly. “Zuko here.” Which, duh.

Out of the corners of his eyes Sokka notices Aang raising his staff, sees Katara uncap her water skin and Toph shift into an earth bending stance. Belatedly, he reaches over his shoulder and fingers the edge of his boomerang, ready to draw it at a moment's notice. Honestly though, he's more than a little preoccupied with figuring out Zuko's scent. He'd never noticed it before, not in a single one of their many previous encounters, so why now? And what does it mean? And why is the smell of his enemy the most enticing thing he's ever encountered?

Zuko continues on like he hasn't noticed their open hostility, though he must have done so. “Hey, I heard you guys flying around down there so I thought I'd just,” he gives a little shrug. “wait for you here.”

Appa sidles up to him then and (Sokka isn't surprised in the least) he roars. And then (Sokka is very surprised) the bison quiets down and- licks Zuko, like he's actually covered in the honey that he smells of. Sokka wrinkles his nose (Appa has licked him before, and his clothes reeked of bison slobber for days afterwards) and wonders if the fire bender is actually covered in honey.

The wind changes then, blowing straight towards Sokka and the others, and Sokka gets a noseful of Zuko-scent and spends the next few minutes in a kind of mental haze where the few coherent thoughts running through his brain can be condensed down to 'oh yum, how can I get me a piece of that?' Other than that he's kind of just reacting on muscle memory.  
After the matter, he wonders if he had as stupid an expression on his face as his body seemed to want him to have. Not that it would have mattered, since everyone was too busy being hostile towards Zuko (or in Zuko's case, trying to placate/convince them all all at once) to notice his head not being in the situation at all. Well, until he mentions Combustion Man, which does get his attention enough for him to whip his boomerang out and wave it menacingly at him.

It also gets his attention when- after several attempts of trying to get them to trust him and believe that he's changed (pfft, yeah right)- Zuko drops to his knees (a few feet in front of Sokka, actually) and bows his head, offering his wrists up to them.

“If you won't accept me as a friend, maybe you'll accept me a prisoner.”

Sokka's skin heats up and he definitely has a problem now. A downstairs kind of problem. A rapidly growing, really awkward boner problem. But hey, it's not his fault! He's a healthy young Alpha, and Zuko's just knelt in front of him, all submissive and offering himself and smelling deliciously of fire-and-honey, of-

“Holy shit, you're an Omega!” Sokka yells, and instantly feels like an idiot because, one, he really should have realized that from the get-go, and two, he can't believe that he just said that out loud.

Zuko's head snaps up and those golden eyes (pretty, thinks his stupid Alpha-brain) stare at him in horror. Just behind him he hears Katara make a strangled squawking noise and in his peripheral vision he can see Toph shifting again, tilting her head back and scenting the air (they're both Alphas, Spirits, he should have remembered that). 

“Are you really?” Aang asks, edging forward a bit to stare curiously at Zuko. Aang's a Beta, quiet and calm (or he will be when he gets older), and his nose isn't as well developed as an Alpha's nose is, so he can't get his answer through scent.

Zuko doesn't answer, which is a kind of answer itself. He just hunches his shoulders and manages to look ashamed without actually changing his facial expression. Aang scoots forward another step, still watching the fire bender. Sokka is watching him too, can't tear his eyes away, actually, and he wants to ask Zuko to stand up but his mouth doesn't seem to be listening to his brain right now. At least, not the rational part of his brain.

“How have we never noticed that before?” Katara murmurs, sounding shocked and confused. Sokka still hasn't bothered to look back at her.

“I was… I got good at hiding it,” Zuko practically whispers, fixing his gaze on some point over Sokka's shoulder. “I'm- I was the Fire Prince. For the future Fire Lord to be anything but an Alpha? It's- unseemly.” The way he says that last word bears more weight than the word itself implies. It's heavy with hesitation, regret, humiliation and, worst of all, a distinct note of fear. As if his whole he's been taught that being an Omega is vile, contemptible thing.

“Oh,” Katara says softly, which, yeah, basically sums up how Sokka is feeling. And he's still kind of got that whole awkward boner thing going on (thank the Spirits for thick Water Tribe pants), but now, on top of that, his protective Alpha instincts are flaring up. Apparently, thinking about the idea of such a pretty, sweet-smelling Omega getting told that he's an abomination gets him pretty worked up. He's usually a fairly restrained guy, not one to let his instincts control him, but right now he's fighting down a growl and if he had fur he's 100% sure that it would be standing on end.

“Sokka.” Aang's hand closes over his upper arm and he steps close, close enough that his calming Beta-scent washes over Sokka. “You're freaking Zuko out.”

Okay, so maybe he wasn't restraining that growl nearly as well as he thought he was. Zuko is kind of cowering a little, eyes narrowed in fear, and Toph is definitely laughing at him (silently, shoulders shaking from it). He flushes and clears his throat, looking quickly down at his boots.

“Sorry,” he says quietly, kind of completely mortified. “I wasn't mad at you, I promise.” His dad taught him- well him and Katara- how to treat an Omega right, okay? He knows that they are pretty prone to blaming themselves for anything and everything, and that the first thing to do when you apologize to an Omega is to reassure them that it's not their fault, just in case. It seems to work, oddly enough, and even though he can't really see Zuko now he sort of feels him relax a fraction.

“Can you give us some time to talk this over?” Aang asks the fire bender, his voice all calm, friendly Beta. “You can wait over here while we step over there.” He gestures vaguely in the direction of the wall, where the group can speak more privately.

“Of course,” Zuko replies, sounding relieved to be back on track. He sits back on his heels, resting his hands on his thighs. Sokka peeks up just in time to notice his fingers curling loosely into the fabric of his trousers. “Take all the time you need.”

Sokka narrowly avoids licking his lips at the sight that Zuko presents (seriously, what even is his problem today), and joins the others in walking back a few dozen paces to discuss their options.

“He was telling the truth about everything,” Toph says immediately, head tilted to the side. She's still scenting the air a little, curiously. “I don't know how you picked up on his scent to easily, Sokka. He's pretty well hidden, even to me.”

“Me too,” Katara chimes in, looking at Sokka almost accusingly. Sokka sticks his tongue out at her and redirects the conversation.

“That's not important right now. What's important is whether or not we'll let him into the group.”

“Aang does need to learn fire bending.” Toph tilts her head back as if contemplating the ceiling (which of course she isn't). “Prince Fancy-pants is probably the best option we've got.”

“We could try to find Jeong Jeong again,” Katara suggests, looking at Aang, who shakes his head.

“Who knows how long it would take to track him down at this point. We were lucky to find him the first time.”

“Does knowing he's an Omega really mean we can trust Zuko now?” his sister argues, and she's got a point. This one thing can't make up for all of the bad things that he's done.

“You know what I think?” Toph interrupts before anyone can voice an actual opinion. “I think that we should give him a chance. We clearly outnumber him, and Aang needs a teacher. If he betrays us, we really will take him prisoner and I don't think he can stop us.”

They're all silent because, yeah, that's all kind of true. Aang needs a teacher, and Zuko can't take on three (well, four if you count Haru) benders and Sokka.

“We could keep an eye on him,” Sokka suggests. “Like, set up a watch and all take shifts.” The others all nod in quiet agreement.

“Aang?” Katara looks at him again. “You're being awfully quiet.”

Aang takes a slow breath, fingering the wood of his glider. “I think… yes. I think that that's a good plan.” He seems like he's about to say something else too, but he just gives a little shake of his head and smiles at them all.

Sokka grins back and turns in Zuko's direction, waving to get his attention. “You're in!” he calls, striding over to him, still grinning widely. He stops when he's a few paces away and stretches a hand out to the still kneeling Omega. “Welcome to the Team.”

Zuko stands and, after a moment of hesitation, clasps his proffered hand tightly. His lips twitch a little and a small smile blooms on his lips.

“Thanks, Sokka.”

Sokka almost groans. Has Zuko ever said his name before? If he has, he's never said it like this, all grateful warmth and shyness and- ugh. He is so not going to survive this. He drops Zuko's hand, begging his body not to betray him and let his face blush. Zuko's scent spikes and if he wasn't blushing before he certainly is now.

Spirits, this is going to suck so bad for him. Honestly though, through the haze of Zuko's honey-and-fire smell, can't really bring himself to care that much.

**Author's Note:**

> I am a slut for Zuko being loved and cared for. Stay tuned for more.


End file.
